Sweet Song
by Aiko Isari
Summary: [Post-02] Sequel to My Sanctuary, semi-epilogue compliant. After a lot of exams, Yagami Kei just wants to have a long rest. But when his mother decides it's time for him to exercise his 'listening' skills, he knows that's not going to happen. So much for a peaceful winter break.
1. Chapter 1: Snow Falling

_Chapter One: Snow Falling_

"Akira's hogging the crayons again!"

"Use the markers then, stupid girl!"

"Are you calling " _girl_ " an insult?"

"No, but I'm calling _you_ stupid!"

On and on it went, punctured with the derisive kick of a soda can. Eleven-year-old Yagami Kei pinched his nose, wishing his hair was thicker so as to block out the pair in front of him. There was always _something_ that drove those two up the wall and he either could stop them ignore them. Today, at least for right now, he was ignoring them. He had a math test tomorrow and just wanted to make sure he could pass. Stopping them would _not_ help him study.

"Stupid fractions." The comment came from the other side of the couch. His best friend, yes, not even Motomiya Daisuke's son could really, truly count as Kei's best friend for many reasons, Takaishi Hirose, had his brow furrowed in a way that would look constipated on anyone else. On him, it was just irritation

Kei agreed privately, but focused on chewing his rice and puzzling over the way to divide numbers that don't go together. "At least it's not algebra," he said with a wince and a swallow, remembering that one of their... _clan_ , for lack of a better word, to be a year ahead of him had ridiculous equations to stare at for an hour or so. He could see the smoke from here.

Hirose yawned and cracked his knuckles, deciding not to comment, turning to the actual fight. It was probably about to become a brawl. "If you two aren't gonna study, can you make your cards without killing each other? This ain't your house to blow up!" Ayame-san would kill him for that rough of language, but secretly, Kei liked it. It was Hirose. He couldn't be any other way. Unless a Pucchiemon hit him with a spell or something.

Akira looked up, burgundy hair spiking more with affront. "Then _you_ tell Miyo to use the markers like everybody else!" Miyo threw her beanie at him and it smacked him hard enough in the face to send the other boy to the floor. Kei always wondered if she kept rocks in there,

"That doesn't mean you should be hoggin' the crayons!" Before Akira could retort, Miyo had already vaulted over the length of the child-sized table and tackled him without knocking anything over. If it were anybody else, Kei would have thought that was impossible. But it was Miyo, and around Akira, she could perform feats that she would never think of doing otherwise. Akira had a tendency to bring that out of people.

Kei got up from his food, but it was too late. The two of them were already wrestling towards the television, hair flying in faces, yelling words he hoped to god they had learned by accident. They were moving dangerously close to the wooden stand. Kei ran over and wrapped his arms around Miyo's middle, trying to wrench her grip from Akira's shirt. It was his favorite. If she ripped it, there really would be no stopping them.

Thankfully, Hirose got the hint and scurried to drag Akira away from her, wincing as he moved to dodge flailing hands. Akira was not helping matters, clawing like a cat. "Chibimon, Poromon grab the humans, will ya?"

"I don't think my beak is strong enough for that," murmured the pink bird, but he went over and pecked Miyo gently in the face anyway. "Miyo-san, you're getting out of hand."

Chibimon scoffed from his perch on the window sill. "Akira can do whatever he wants!"

Kei muffled a laugh. _Somebody_ was still sore about being thrown through a window back in August. Digging his heels in, he murmured. "Please stop trying to destroy my family's apartment, Miyo-chan." He widened his eyes, trying to look pitiful.

The effect of his words, or perhaps Kei himself, was instantaneous and the two stopped struggling, sheepish grins forming on their faces like they had stolen cookies instead of scuffed up the carpet and each other. They mumbled apologies and Kei slowly released Miyo to slump to the floor. Hirose mimed slitting his throat before doing the same for Akira. Kei gave them both a soft, yet wary glance before going back to the couch. The two remained fidgeting where they sat, staring between their holiday cards and the slightly older pair with some childish form of trepidation. Plotmon muffled a snort from her spot on a pillow.

As if on cue, the door eased open. "Are the brats ruining our cheap carpeting again?"

Kei turned and leaped from his seat to tackle the woman at the door into a hug. " _Nana_!" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Noriko's face flush with warmth at the name he _knew_ he should have grown out of but honestly didn't want to. "Welcome home, how was work?"

She grunted, putting him back on his feet. He was probably too heavy for full-body tackles by now. Oh well! "Glad and hating the exams that will be on their way. Have you studied for the day?"

"Some, just taking a lunch break." Kei stretched and danced around her so she could get by.

"More like a keep-the squirts-from-destroying-your-house break," Hirose added from his newfound position on the arm of the couch.

Akira's eye ticked but he bit his tongue. Not even he had the lack of self-preservation that would induce getting the wrath of Hirose and his dangerous temper on full blast. Takaishi Takeru's son his left-

His thoughts were thrown abruptly out of whack by Noriko's bark of laughter. "Typical squirts," she said with a smirk. Akira and Miyo flushed, embarrassed, and looked to Kei, who waved them off with a meek sort of indulgence in his _nana's_ eccentricities. "Would it kill you two to get along?"

"Yes," Akira blurted out. "She threw Chibimon out the window!"

"You painted Poromon YELLOW!" Miyo retorted. "He smelled like my brother's kindergarten class for a _week_! And he couldn't see!"

"YOU THREW CHIBIMON OUT THE WINDOW!"

"I'LL THROW _YOU_ OUT THE WINDOW NEXT!"

Hirose, eyebrows raised to the heavens, threw himself off of the couch and smacked both of the kids to the ground. "Swear if ya'll can't at least hate each other without shoutin'-" he snapped, making to get up.

Kei pinched his nose again. " _Nana_ , why is our extended family insane?"

"Don't question this," Noriko told him with a sly laugh. "You're as weird as they are."

Kei had the courtesy to flush. "Thanks, _nana_." He paused. "Where's mom?" They usually came home together, had some quality time.

Noriko glanced at her terminal. "She went to stop at the store."

"E-eh..." Kei sighed. "She could have called before that, I wanted to ask her about dinner..."

Noriko ruffled his hair and moved to catch Terriermon as he jumped in through the window, a bad habit from hot summer days in a college apartment. "What, you want a favorite?"

Kei flushed and shook his head. "I thought you guys would want me to try cooking stuff for a few days... because of exams and all..."

"We're not that swamped, Kei," hummed his mother as she opened the door. "Well, _I'm_ not anyway." Hikari laughed and reached up to squeeze Noriko's shoulder. "I'm not sure I can say the same about _this one_ , however."

Kei looked away to avoid laughing at the childish expression on his nana's face, barely managing to poke one of her puffed-out cheeks. "Welcome home, mum, what's for dinner?" The others waved, Akira and Miyo now supervised enough to not risk behaving themselves.

"Something simple," was the woman's reply, brushing wisps of slightly ragged brown hair from her face and smoothing her shirt. "I'm starting to think that the parents are more difficult to work with than the children." Tailmon purred in her arms, tail lashing at her partner's exhaustion.

Noriko strolled over to put on a pot of tea. "I've been telling you that for years." Her voice turned nasally and she turned up her nose. "'My daughter cannot _possibly_ be ranked only _thirty_ - _two_ in this class! Are you showing a bias, Kawada- _sensei_?" Noriko dropped her voice back again with a grumble. "If I have to hear harpies complain one more time that that eighty should be an eighty three..."

Akira snickered behind a gift card and Miyo and ventured to ask. "That's... nobody we know, right?"

"None of the clan, no," Noriko answered with a snort. "I did hear Jyou's son's skipping a grade next year."

"He and I had a chat in the store," Hikari said from the sofa, eyes scanning Hirose's math work. He shot her an imploring frown "He's terrified."

"But Uncle Jyou's a pushover," Akira called from where he was grabbing crayons under the table. He bit back a swear word when Miyo's foot missed his head."He could just tell him no."

"I've never heard Shika say the word 'no' to anyone without stuttering it," Hirose muttered in Kei's ear. "Poor bastard."

Kei twisted his ear, trying not to smile. "Bad Hirose."

For some reason, this got a particularly pouty look from Akira, which Kei didn't understand, but decided to ignore. Akira was Akira; he had to doubt the boy even knew he was doing it.

Hirose rolled his eyes and shoved him. "Go help your mum with food. I need to actually study."

Kei pouted, but did so. Hirose could be so mean!

* * *

Hours later, Kei sighed in relief. "Done, Mom, nana!" He put down his pencil and thumped his head on the desk. The others would have laughed if they hadn't gone home already.

"Don't break that, you need it," Noriko called from the dining room. Terriermon was loopily dangling himself from one of the blades of the ceiling fan. Nutcase.

"My desk or my head?" he muttered, rubbing it with care anyway.

Hikari chortled and brushed a glass of ice water against his cheek, causing him to yelp. "Both." She laughed at the pout on his face. "Come on, from the chair and to the bed. You've been sitting there so long; you might get back pain."

"Mom's so confident in me." Kei began to pack up. It was almost not worth it because of the mess he would make in the morning.

"Of course I am." She mussed his hair. "I'm not the one with the test anxiety, now am I?"

Kei had the courtesy to flush. "Well, these are tough exams. I can't just let Plotmon beat them up like the Digimon."

Noriko snorted into her second mug of tea. "She could do it to the teachers."

"My coworkers wouldn't appreciate that," Hikari said with a laugh. "You want a bath, Kei?"

"Please!" He moved to clean his desk, putting papers away and packing his bag. He rubbed his eyes, nearly tripping over Plotmon. He gave her a gentle nudge with his foot. "Up, furry-face."

Plotmon yawned, ears flopping as she raised her oversized head. "Wanna sleep."

Kei tried not to snort. "I need a bath. And you need a brush. Come on." He picked her up, ignoring her playful whining into his shirt.

His mother was still in the bathroom when he cme in. She dabbed at the light traces of makeup left on her face." The water may be too hot for Plotmon," she said, folding up the wipe. Kei nodded, and set his yawning partner on top of the toilet seat.

"Have you 'heard' anything recently?" Hikari asked as he undressed, offering him a scrunchie. Kei took it, mulling the question over as he tied his wisps of hair back. He shook his head as he entered the water.

"Not that I remember," he said with a grimace of relief. The hot water felt _good._ "I'm pretty sure exams have been blocking it out for me, or I've been doing it without thinking about it." From where he could catch a glimpse of the mirror, he saw his mother's lips purse with worry, wrinkling her face like a paper. ball "What have you heard?"

"Noriko thinks I shouldn't get involved," Hikari said, almost to herself. Well, that was helpful. Kei hated when his mother said stuff like that. That meant it was _dangerous_ , and danger was more appealing when you were eight and knew you could get bigger people to help. At eleven, you _were_ the help.

Tailmon snorted from her place by the radiator. "Noriko thinks you should never get involved with anything exciting because she can't be as much fun."

"I _heard_ that!" Noriko shouted from the living room. Mother and son looked at each other and laughed.

The tension ruined, Hikari let out a sigh. "At the time, I thought it was just a daydream. But the god of the black sea doesn't just send dreams."

Kei winced and sat up straight. Plotmon opened one eye. Tailmon, however, did not react. _Not fair,_ Kei thought. _I learn everything_ last. Not that he had any real reason to know first, but still!

"I know he is a Digimon," Hikari continued, and she didn't seem too concerned. "But he is a god, I ought to respect him."

Funny thought, everyone else hated when his mother mentioned that other world.

"He told me there was a lost soul wandering around. He had an idea of who they were, or what they were, and he cannot establish contact with it. Eldritch abomination and all." She smiled. "Overwhelming at best."

"So he's asking you," Kei summarized. "And you're asking me."

"If I was younger, I'd just go ahead," Hikari admitted. Tailmon let out a scoffing hiss. "Yes, Tailmon, with or without you. I'm not completely helpless."

"The last time you went there alone, those creatures tried to take you as a mother of endless children." Her partner's tail lashed, narrowly missing a fly. "I'm going to worry."

"I know, but worry about Kei." She winked at her son. "He's the one that's going to do it."

Kei didn't even try to argue. He was going to do it, like it or not. Lost soul? Adventure? The god of the black sea? He was already all in. Too many interesting ideas to just run away.

"I've been around Taichi-oji-san too much," he decided, sinking back into the bubbles.

"You've been a Chosen Child too long," Hikari corrected, leaving the bathroom and offering him some privacy.

That was true too. He had been a Chosen Child long enough that he knew a gentle world and an easy adventure did not exist. That was why he couldn't let go.

He looked out the window of the bathroom. Flakes of white fell in and out of his vision. As he watched, some of them turned pitch black.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ Okay, hit me. Why is an Aiko starting more fics? Well, this was supposed to be out in December. And I got pretty busy so it didn't happen. I figured it ought to come out eventually. So, here it is. I was gonna wait, but a friend of mine was like: I need more fic! So I, of course, obliged. This is dedicated to my friend **firagaproductions** , who loved the earlier works and encouraged this one! Well, here goes! Please review and tell me what you think!

Challenges: Winter Advent Calendar Day 17: write about an OC and J28. write a next-gen fic. If you have not read My Sanctuary, that would help with some background! If not, well, don't worry. This is semi-canon compliant so you can look there for the main confusion.


	2. Chapter 2: Gently Piling Up

_**A/N:** Hey guys! Just in time for Odaiba Day! This got a lot more support than I expected it to, to be honest. Thank you so much!_

* * *

 _Chapter Two: Gently Piling Up_

Kei set his pencil down in relief. Finally. It was done. He was free. Freedom! It was time for winter break! He stretched his arms and legs under his desk. Finally, he could get rid of that kink in his neck after his test results came in. At least for a week or so. Then right back to it. School would never end!

Well, okay, that was exaggerating it a tiny bit. It would end by his twenties. But he couldn't focus on that.

He kicked his chair gently, causing a low snore to rumble from near his foot. Someone giggled, shattering the test environment of the room. Their teacher barely managed to glare them quiet and Kei muffled a snicker. He would have to wake Plotmon later.

He closed his eyes and put his head down. He'd worry about the tests when the results came in. He'd spent so much time studying, his dreams had been full of bubbles being filled in and sentence structures. There was no room in his head for Dark Ocean songs and mysterious missing people.

He hoped wherever said missing girl was, they could wait long enough for him to figure this out.

Kei felt his eyes slipping shut and wanted to panic. Crap, he couldn't phase in class. His mother had told him about this. Class phasing scared people and everyone else was taking the test. He tried to force his eyes open but thinking about math just made it about six times worse. His eyes slipped shut, eyelids heavy as boulders. Kei heard himself sigh but couldn't manage to quiet it down.

When Kei opened his eyes, he saw waves and waves of grey sand. He sighed. "So much for that." He made himself rise, shaking sand from his sleeves. He shed his jacket. _It may be a dream but it sure feels like the beach._ He set off at a languid walk. It was weird, being here alone. Kei had only come to the Dark Ocean twice in his life, once as a baby with his mother that he couldn't remember, and once at the age of eight, having been dragged here by the Deep Ones. They had wanted a hostage. Unfortunately, they had underestimated two angry mothers and Kei himself. He doubted they would try something that dumb again.

He looked around as he walked, reaching the gray sidewalk and touching the gravelly path with one foot. He knew not to wander too far. If the ruler of this world had sung him here, then they must have listened, so he would see them -him-, soon. Hopefully anyway. He took too long, they might call his mothers and there would be a lecture worthy of the digital gods for when he got back.

Kei watched the surf chop up the sand for a while before a chill ran up his spine. Someone was nearby. They weren't behind him, that would be too obvious… on his right, maybe? He turned left and began to walk down the side. There was nothing at first, then a small rustle of leaves. Kei tried not to smile, continuing down the path.

When the stranger's steps grew faster, Kei grinned and turned. He raised his fist mid-spin and clocked the person right in the face. He jumped back, fists raised, one foot back. "Sorry about that," he said, cocking his head to move his hair. "i don't really like stalkers. Can't be helped." Yes, he had learned bravery. He could do this.

The person stumbled back, eyes growing wide. Their hair whipped into their pale, pointed face, grey-blue eyes narrowing once more.

Kei whirled and hurried away. If they were here, there were either others or interference. Kei wasn't sure which worried him more. So he had to get to wherever he needed to go. Hopefully, his ears would kick in when he got there.

He darted behind a fence, hurrying forward. There were footsteps just behind him, slower, coupled with harsh pants of pain. The feet hitting concrete sounded like when his _nana_ slapped the counter. Flesh on gravel… whoever it was lacked shoes. They wouldn't be able to follow for long, unless they had no sense of limits or something.

Kei almost made it towards a grove when his vision wavered. He stumbled, caught himself against a tree. Kei made to scurry behind said tree, breathing as quietly as possible. His vision wavered again. He shut his eyes. Hurry, hurry, open ears, open the heart.

 _'...now…'_ Like static, tiny voice, young. ' _you can… now…'_

"Kind of," he mouthed. Quiet voice, feminine, not necessarily female. He knew that person was still hunting, still searching for him. He scuffed his feet in the sand a little, grounding himself. "Again..."

 _'thanks…'_ Empty brown eyes, light flickering, voice of a child… dark skin... too many details at once. The image wavered.

Thanks? For what? He hadn't even done anything yet.

 _'...this far… open… open...'_

Repeated words… a request, maybe? He didn't trust his eyes in this place.

 _'… see…'_

And yet she wanted him to. Well, what did he have to lose? Kei opened his eyes.

The other person was gone. So were the trees and sand. He was curled up on a bed of ice instead. He shivered a little, grateful for his winter clothes. He put his jacket back on, pulling himself up to his feet. As Kei looked down, the ice trembled with his weight. He swayed and fell over.

"Ow..." he muttered. He put a hand to his temple and it rebelled under the gentle touch of his fingers. "This is a great start to the adventure..."

A tiny giggle broke him from his thoughts. It sounded as though it had bubbles in it. He opened his eyes again and looked down. Instead of his reflection, a girl stared back at him. She covered her mouth with her hand, laughing still. Kei tilted his head. "What's so funny?" She only giggled once more and reached for the ice. A chill raced up his arm right above where their fingers met.

Then his whole body seized up with pain and he collapsed onto the ice. "Can't..." He twitched his legs but that was all. Kei managed to open one eye, a ringing sound in his ears. Looking back at him was a gaze of abnormal blue.;

Then he woke up, sunshine streaming through the classroom windows. Plotmon was still asleep. Kei looked around, listening to the scurrying of pencils and the ticking of the clock.

 _Guess I wasn't gone too long…_

As he thought that, he felt a pair of eyes drilling holes into his back. He let out a mental sigh.

Hirose had noticed. Of _course._

Kei almost thumped his head against the desk, but another thought had crossed his mind before he could try.

He knew that girl, but from where?

* * *

"You're gonna tell me." Hirose sounded a bit smug.

"No, I'm not."

Tokomon let out an amused snort from Hirose's Digivice. "He's not, Hiro-hiro. Give him some air."

Hirose scoffed. "Do you really gotta call me that?"

"I'll call you that until you listen to me." The Tokomon made a face from inside the Digivice. "Which is never gonna happen so why bother?"

"But why can't you just tell?" Hirose ignored his partner, focusing on Kei instead. Kei flushed. "Come on, there's gotta be a reason."

Kei sighed a bit, mussing up his brown hair. "You know mama doesn't want me to talk about this stuff."

"Why, cause dad and the others will have a conniption fit?" Hirose scoffed. "We're friends, we shouldn't keep secrets just because the adults say we should."

Kei tried not to roll his eyes. His friendship with Hirose seemed to run on the idea of Hirose going against authority and Kei constantly having to pull him out of said problems. That said, he understood what his friend meant, at least a little. The other kids constantly looked at him out of the corner of their eyes, wondering why he always looked so tired or had less time to play. He suspected they had an idea, but… he wouldn't drag them into it.

Not that that stopped Hirose from trying to be involved _anyway._ What had he done to deserve a friend like him?

Oh wait, he knew the answer to that: punched the crap out of him and his partner.

He really hoped Hirose never remembered that.

"It's because we're friends that I don't want to tell you," Kei finally said, holding his hands behind his back. "I don't actually know anything other than what Mama and Nana have said and what happened today. No need to get the dogs barking at the gunshot."

Hirose stared at him, dark blue eyes wide. "No need to _what_?"

Kei grinned. "Exactly." He adjusted his scarf, rubbing his hands together. "It's so cold..."

"You just have poor circulation," Hirose sniffed, dropping the topic.

"Says you in your fluffy coat!" Plotmon barked from Kei's hood. She never went into the Digivice, even though the new models were equipped to allow that for this very reason.

Hirose's cheeks turned a dusty pink. "I-I'm only wearing it because Mom and Dad bought it!"

" _Sure..."_

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Kei lost himself in laughter, putting the day's events out of his mind. There was only so much he could do anyway.

* * *

Noriko watched her son doodle away in his sketchbook, listening to the news with half an ear. "Another flare-up..." she murmured to herself. Chosen and their Digimon partners acting erratically, running off into the wind. To her it sounded more like parents couldn't take care of their kids. Still though, unruly children with naturally agitated Digimon, that was a recipe for doom and destruction. "Kei, you recognize any of those names?"

Kei didn't answer immediately, chewing on a gummy bear. "A couple of them sound familiar, like they're some 'clan'kids I never met. Other than that..." he managed a shrug. "They still won't talk about her, will they?"

Noriko sighed. "Been three years since that onw..." She trailed off before she could stop herself. Kei would, as far as she was concerned, always be too young to think about suicide, even though it was likely he had been concerned about it at least once or twice. "Ah, speak of the devil."

"We're coming up on the third anniversary of the death of Hida Mio-chan. She would be ten years old today. Hida-chan…-"

"They could not be so clinical about it," Noriko muttered to herself, swallowing a bite of fish. She glanced at Kei and frowned. His eyes were locked on the screen, almost comically wide. His pencil slipped from his fingers. "What is it?"

Kei didn't speak, attention laser focused on the screen. When the story changed, his shoulders sagged. "I… I think I saw Mio-chan in the Dark Ocean today."

Noriko couldn't help it. She swore.

Hikari was _not_ going to be happy about this.

* * *

Hikari was not happy about that. Fortunately, she didn't swear. Noriko had enough of a mouth for the two of them.

"You trust Kei on this?" Hikari leaned against her shoulder, watching Kei go through his nightly routine, an uncomfortable somberness in his face.

"Trust his reactions more than his thoughts." Noriko shifted to sit on their bed, eyes distant, as though somewhere back in time. "The look on chis face said it all."

Hikari bit her lip. "Oh, Iori-kun..."

"He and Rosa are not going to be happy," Noriko mused with a wince. "Think we should tell them now?"

Hikari hesitated, then shook her head no, smiling by reflex at Tailmon as she crawled in the window. "We'll need to talk to Koushiro-kun and Onii-chan first, see if they can work with the others to get the case details out. When we have more information, and Kei has heard more, then we will talk to them."

"They'll want to know as soon as possible," Noriko said quietly.

Hikari listened to the sound of the squeaking bathroom faucet before she answered. "I don't want to give them false hope, Noriko. I'll talk to Kei about it tomorrow."

They let the topic go after that, talking aimlessly until Kei wandered into the room. Without a word, they let him crawl into bed with them, an indulged desire from childhood scars and bad dreams.

Unfortunately, morning wouldn't end this nightmare. Only actions could do that.


	3. Chapter 3: A Soft Hour

_Chapter Three: A Soft Hour_

The thump of the carcass near his foot made Kei sigh. "Plotmon let it go."

"But I want lunch!" whined the dog, holding the squirrel in her teeth. It squeaked and screamed and was already bleeding and Kei sighed again. He couldn't just leave it to limp off and die, but…

"All right, make it fast."

Plotmon cheered, the sound muffled then by the squirming fluffball. Kei turned away, ignoring the shaking and snapping and throwing behind him. Did his partner really have to be that violent for lunch? It was his fault for not helping her become a vegetarian. Oh wait, dogs weren't supposed to be vegetarians, never mind.

He tapped his foot. "Plotmon." No answer other than those noises, with a little extra chomping and cracking sounds. Kei sighed and turned away. He began to type a quick apology to his uncle. Iori-san would probably understand. Digimon were notorious for their love of food. Of course, at first people had underestimated the curiosity Digimon would have towards it and the hunting in the process. They had learned.

His terminal beeped a few minutes after he sent the message. He sighed in relief. "Hurry up Plotmon!"

Plotmon swallowed. "Why? It's not like being any earlier will make this any easier."

Kei sighed and mussed his messy hair. He knew that, but… "He still needs to hear about this."

If it had been Mio he had seen in the Dark Ocean, Iori-san deserved to know before anyone else. After all, she had simply not been found. He didn't know the circumstances behind her disappearance; none of the children felt like they had the right to. But he would know, and he would have information. Which they desperately needed.

There was a loud chomp and a squish, which pulled him from his thoughts. Kei pinched his nose. Reasons why to become a vegetarian: Plotmon. Not that it would save him any.

"Fal-" Kei began and Plotmon quickly swallowed.

"Done!"

Kei raised an eyebrow. She seriously hated hearing her name out loud. Silly pup. They could just change it then. "Come on then," he said with a laugh, hurrying down the path to the train station. If they were lucky, they'd make in time for the next train. Kei did not fancy waiting around in this cold. He pulled his hood over his head, watching the snow fall. Despite such a hearty meal of squirrel, Plotmon jumped after the flakes, chasing them with her tongue.

What was he going to say to Hida-san? What could you say to someone who had had to burn an empty casket? How could you just casually say, your daughter's alive? What did you respond with to that?

 _Probably the same thing I would say to my father if I ever met him, whatever that is._ Kei shook his head as the train arrived, marveling his luck at it not being rush hour. He set Plotmon on his lap, acknowledging the curious looks of a tiny child whose partner hadn't hatched yet with a smile. He was used to it, and didn't mind letting Plotmon make faces at them the whole ride. It was pure cute anyway.

It was a welcome distraction, in any case.

* * *

The Hida home was a small apartment. With both husband and wife constantly working on one thing or another, having a lot of space was probably not necessary. Kei was lucky Iori-san was home. He felt Plotmon fidget as he rang the doorbell. "Stop it," he hissed. "You're supposed to be polite."

"I'm not _good_ at polite."

Well, that was true. Still! "You can try at least," Kei told her as Hida Iori opened the door. He quickly bowed his head at the older man. "Good afternoon, Iori-san," he said softly, bowing his head. "May I come in? I'm sorry to bother you while you're off of work but..."

Iori shook his head, smiling a little. Kei knew how to handle the other man: polite honesty. It was a lot like he treated his grandparents, even though they didn't like it much themselves, playfully bemoaning how they had gotten such a polite little boy from their children. It was an odd joke, but Kei liked seeing them smile. Iori gestured for Kei to come in and the boy obediently followed, Plotmon sniffing around like she would find food on the floor.

Armadimon waved lazily from where he was happily flat on a cushion. Immediately, Plotmon bounded over, jumping onto the older Digimon's shell and laying happily on it. Kei laughed, feeling a little of the gloom in his chest loosen. He sat on the cushion and gratefully accepted the green tea. Sipping at it returned the heat to his stomach.

"I assume this isn't a casual visit." Iori gestured to the trim of gold on the collar of his shirt and the way his digivice rested in his free hand rather than on his belt loop. At Kei's wide eyes, Iori smiled a little. "Your mother brought it up to us at the last reunion. I've heard that Taichi-san is making a little Union out of you."

"Well..." Kei blushed and scratched his nose. "I… it's not quite like the one that's been forming in the Digital World already but… it's something. More of a connected branch. I guess that's how you would put it. I don't know. I don't talk with them much myself." Well, that saved him a little explanation, like about the real, true blue Digivice, rather than the terminal ones that all the parents were getting their kids.

"It's still an accomplishment of sorts, despite all of what you have to endure." Iori's voice was proud, but wistful. Kei didn't have to listen to know what the man was thinking about it. "Hikari-san must walk around with her heartbeat in her throat."

"Her and nana both," Kei replied, flushing darker. This was awkward. How was he going to bring this up?

The question was soon answered for him by the power going out all at once. Kei looked at him. "Is everything connected to the internet?"

"Shouldn't be..." Iori rose to his feet, followed by a cautious Armadimon. Wow, he thought cautious and Armadimon in the same sentence. "I have yet to put kitchen appliances on the same upgrade. Something must have turned on and blown a fuse..." The man trailed off as the television turned back on. His eyes narrowed, and Iori returned to watch the screen.

Kei looked toward it as well, and felt a lurch in his stomach. His ears caught the faint sound of waves and he looked around. Water began to seep up from the floorboards and around his knees and ankles. He dimly thought that he didn't want to walk home in these. Then he opened his eyes to the screen again, looking at the grainy image slowly clearing.

 _This is an unknown channel,_ gurgled a soft, familiar voice in his mind.

 _Dagomon?_

 _Oh good, you_ are _paying attention. Keep focused._

Kei reflected that that would be easier if ocean gods didn't say cryptic things in his ears while he needed to pay attention, but kept that thought to himself. He was only under the fickle deity's favor due to the fact that he had a strange softness for his mother. He didn't want to lose that. So he kept watching. He heard Iori-san moving around. His feet didn't squelch, which sent a sigh of relief almost out of Kei's mouth to cause a fuss. This meant the Ocean's closeness was affecting him and him alone. Even Plotmon was more focused on the television screen. That was good, at least.

Still meant he was crazy.

The volume turned up on the television speakers. Iori looked around. "I feel like I've been guided into a horror movie," he mused. "Where's Daisuke-san and his trope list when you need one?"

"Selling noodles, dagya." Armadimon leaned up on the table to see the screen better, leaving scratch marks on the already battered table.

Iori nudged his old friend's shell. "Don't be sarcastic."

Armadimon mumbled an apology underneath Kei and Plotmon's laughter. Then the speakers let out a whine. They all turned as the screen cleared, revealing the gray scenery he had seen just one week before, and even before that. The Dark Ocean was as solemn as ever, the waves steady and strong. They were ready to pull the corpses down.

 _Don't be macabre. Just watch._

Kei opened his eyes and ears, stroking the pad of his thumb against Plotmon's ear as she nuzzled his fingertips. He smiled mirthlessly as the song of a bird took to the speakers. A figure began to dance on the sand. Her hair was pale, bone-white, and Kei felt his smile widen a little. Yes, he knew that one. That was the one who had chased him through the beach. She was there again, twirling like the world was hers alone. She turned to look at the screen. She waved, and as she waved, everything flickered red and black, like a poisoned wound.

Then she was gone. In her place was Hida Mio, dark skin with blue veins, a smile that broke both cheeks. Her eyes were like pudding close to moldy as she opened them.

For a moment the screen looked like it had shattered. She raised her fists and beat them forward. Kei didn't dare look at Iori-san. She beat her fists twice more. Then Kei watched her breathe over the glass. She began to scrawl in foggy kana:

 _"The fire isn't doused in water."_

Then, the lights turned back on. The news flickered onto the television. For a moment, they both stared at the screen. Then Kei cleared his throat. "That was what I came to talk to you about sir," he said. His voice was reverently soft in the air. "Mio-chan is alive. I need your help to figure out how we can save her."

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** This would get more editing but it's late. Also it took a slight horror movie turn for a minute there. Weird. Oh well. Please read and review.


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